1 little, 2 little, 3 little Indians...

We had three extra little people at our house yesterday. So, six people 4 and under.

The boys loved playing (and constructing) with Sonny.

And Lala was just delightful and happy the whole time. What a darling girl.

And all of the "big kids" were excited to have Mac 'n Cheese and apple slices for lunch. Easy to please.

But the baby wasn't happy unless she was being held.

Thank goodness Heidi was so happy and easy all day.

Ann Dee pointed out that my blessing for helping out a friend was realizing how easy and nice my baby was. Very true!

I love my little family so much!

Bunny Slippers

Thanks, Aunt Bec!! Hee hee, these are too cute. And perfect for chilly mornings. And somehow she reminds me of her mother in these...

Siblings

Today marks 3 months since "baby sister" joined us. Wow. How can that be? Wasn't it just yesterday that Elijah was our baby?

And how did McKay change from "baby brother" into "tough cowboy"?

Now little sister is figuring out how to wrap each and every one of us around her finger. She's talking (gooing), smiling, even chuckling now and then.... and of course, she has figured out that we'll run to her every time she starts crying. With two smitten big brothers and two adoring parents, this one's gonna be spoiled.

Who does she look like? Elijah? McKay? A mix? Or is she just a brand new mold?

Either way, we love them all.

Boo!

Abram went out to start his truck on the morning of Halloween, and when he came back in, Elijah asked with big eyes, "Was it spooky out there?!" That wasn't the last funny thing he said that day. On the way to get flu shots at the health department, he said, with sobs, "Mamma, I would like to get a hamburger instead of a flu shot, please." And after trick-or-treating, he said, "I love Halloween so much more than Sunday!" Ha!

But backing up... The boys dressed up all day as whatever they wanted to be. Sometimes they had to explain to me what exactly they were dressed as. Space alien:

Cowboy (maybe my personal favorite):

Police officer:

Cool police man and Pirate:

Knight in shining armor and Lasso-roper:

And more.

But at the end of the day, when it was time to go load up on treats, they were....

Mountain Men:

And the whole family went with the theme:

Abram cut out the boys' shirts and I sewed them up. I made my dress and Abram's shirt. He made all the leggings. We each made two pair of moccasins. Abram made three of the possibles bags and I made one. Oh and we each made two belts. And on Halloween morning I whipped up this little dress for Heidi. I'd say we make a good team! (The moccasins were some that Mum found at the D.I. for $2!)
After the kiddos loaded up on sugar, Abram started carving pumpkins with the boys. Elijah was so fascinated! McKay just wanted to eat more sugar.


Abram carved FOUR pumpkins! I only carved one, but we both agreed that it was our favorite, because Elijah drew the face on, and I cut it out exactly the way he drew it. Can you tell which one it is?

(Far left. Hee hee, too cute.)

Just your normal, nice smile

We got our first snow of the season today. I certainly wasn't ready for it. Then... I couldn't help but notice how gorgeous it was. And when the boys had so much fun playing in it, I couldn't help but smile and be glad for it.




And when I asked McKay for a nice smile, this is what he gave me:

Haha! "No, McKay, just your normal, nice smile," got me this:

"McKay, just smile how you usually do." This:

Haha. Oh well. At least it wasn't his "tough cowboy" face he's been making at us lately:

Enjoy your beautiful day!

Dutch Oven Cookout

A couple weeks ago Abram took us up into the mountains for a dutch oven cookout. He built us a fire and cooked potatoes, onions and carrots while the rest of us relaxed and explored.





We're so blessed to live in such a beautiful country and to enjoy the many freedoms that we do. And I'm blessed to have such a wonderful, healthy little family.

Pumpkins!

For family home evening this week we surprised the boys and took them to our friends' pumpkin patch. Elijah has been so excited about Halloween decorations this year.

McKay just loves to do anything with the family. Especially when he gets to wear his new cowboy shirt from Mol.



And Heidi is just happy to be snuggled wherever we are.

A beautiful day

Last Saturday my midwife and friend Tami invited me to come ride horses with her. She has so many gorgeous horses, and she lives in the most beautiful spot in all of the Uintah Basin. Abram and I wish we could build a house on her property. Love it. While I rode with Tami and her adopted 10-year-old son Patrick, Abram went exploring with Elijah, McKay and Heidi. At one point I looked across a valley and saw my little family hiking down a mountain side. I galloped my horse over to see them, and Elijah started running to me at full speed. Abram said it was just like a scene from a storybook. Fortunately, he had a camera on his phone and snapped a few pictures. You'll have to look really closely to see us.




He's such a cutie. I also got to take McKay for a ride, but for some reason we didn't get any pictures of that. They both loved being cowboys. I hopped off for a little while to let Abram ride and take his boys for a ride, and I fed Heidi out in that beautiful scenery. It was magical.

And THEN... Oh man. Tami let me ride her big beautiful Friesian mare. I got to lope her around the pasture for a while. That mare felt incredibly powerful, but she was so gentle and wonderful to ride. What a fantastic day!